JPH08203975A - Carrier conveying system - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE: To enable simply changeover between automatic conveying and manual conveying at any time, and prevent deterioration of productivity. CONSTITUTION: The title carrier conveying system is provided with a changeover means 24 which changes over automatic conveying and manual conveying, a carrier recognition means 25 which recognizes the working situation of objects to be worked accommodated in carriers which are supplied to working equipments 21a, 21b, 21c..., and a robot control means 13 which controls a conveying robot 12 on the basis, of the changeover result in the changeover means 24 and the recognition result in the carrier recognition means 25.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a carrier transfer system for transferring a carrier containing a workpiece, and more particularly to a carrier transfer system capable of switching the transfer of the carrier to automatic transfer or manual transfer.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, as a carrier transport system for transporting a carrier containing a workpiece, for example, there is a system for transporting a carrier containing a wafer in a semiconductor device manufacturing process. This carrier transfer system is used for etching wafers, CVD (Chemical Vapor Deposition),
Each processing apparatus for performing semiconductor process processing such as cleaning and a transfer robot for transferring a carrier accommodating the wafer are provided. In this carrier transfer system, a transfer robot sets (supplies) a carrier accommodating a wafer in a processing apparatus, and the processing apparatus takes out the wafer from the set carrier and performs semiconductor processing. Further, when semiconductor processing is completed in the processing apparatus, the processing apparatus stores the processed wafer in a carrier, and the carrier robot releases (carries out) the carrier from the processing apparatus.

By the way, in this carrier transfer system, an operator (operator) switches the settings of the processing device and the transfer robot so that the carrier is set and released not only by the transfer robot but also by the operator. It can also be carried out manually by hand. That is, in order to perform semiconductor process processing in the processing apparatus, it is possible to manually set a carrier containing a wafer and release the carrier containing the processed wafer from the processing apparatus manually. is there.

[0004]

However, in the carrier transfer system described above, when manual transfer is performed, the operator directly manages the processing status in the processing device and the carrier transfer status. , The system has no means to manage them. Therefore, switching from manual transfer to automatic transfer is performed only in the initial state of the system, specifically, when the processing device is not in the process of semiconductor processing and the carrier is not set in the processing device and is not being transferred. I can't. Therefore, for example, when a carrier is set in the processing apparatus, in order to switch from manual transfer to automatic transfer, wait until the semiconductor process processing of the wafers stored in the carrier is completed and the system is in the initial state. The time and the transportation time until the carrier is set again in the processing apparatus by the transportation method after switching are consumed.

Further, the switching between the manual transfer and the automatic transfer needs to be switched between the processing apparatus and the transfer robot, which makes the switching operation troublesome. In other words, in the above carrier transfer system, since waiting time, transfer time, and switching work are required to switch between manual transfer and automatic transfer, the time when the function as the system stops, that is, the semiconductor in the processing device A lot of time is required for interrupting the process process, resulting in a decrease in productivity. Therefore, it is an object of the present invention to provide a carrier transfer system capable of switching between manual transfer and automatic transfer at any time and easily and preventing a decrease in productivity.

[0006]

The present invention is a carrier transport system devised to achieve the above object, and is configured as follows. The processing device that takes out the work piece from the carrier that stores the work piece, performs the processing, and stores the processed work piece in the carrier, and the carrier that stores the work piece to be processed by the processing device And a carrier robot that carries out a carrier that contains a workpiece that has been processed by the processing device from the processing device, and the carrier robot supplies or carries out the carrier to or from the processing device. In a carrier transfer system that is set to perform either one of automatic transfer and manual transfer by hand, the setting of supply or discharge of the carrier is switched from one of the automatic transfer and the manual transfer to the other. The switching means and the machining condition of the carrier supplied to the machining device are confirmed. A carrier recognition means, characterized in that the robot control means for controlling operation of the transport robot based on the recognition result by the switching result and the carrier recognition means in said switching means is provided.

Work guidance means for displaying the recognition result by the carrier recognition means may be provided.

Further, the carrier recognizing means is a bar code recognizing means for identifying the carrier by reading a bar code previously attached to the carrier supplied to the processing apparatus, and is identified by the bar code recognizing means. It may be provided with a determination means for determining whether or not the workpiece stored in the carrier has been processed by the processing device.

[0009]

According to the carrier transport system having the above-described structure, the following actions are achieved. In order to process the workpiece by the processing device, the carrier storing the workpiece in the processing device is automatically transferred by the transfer robot or manually transferred by the transfer robot according to the switching result set by the switching means. And supplied. When the carrier is supplied, the processing device takes out the workpiece from the supplied carrier, performs processing, and then stores the processed workpiece in the carrier. The carrier accommodating the processed object is carried out and carried by automatic carrying or manual carrying according to the switching result set by the switching means. At this time, the carrier recognizing means recognizes what kind of processing situation the carrier supplied to the processing apparatus accommodates the workpiece. The robot control means controls the operation of the transfer robot based on the switching result of the switching means and the recognition result of the carrier recognizing means. Therefore, when the setting is switched from the manual transfer to the automatic transfer by the switching means while the carrier is being supplied to the processing device, the transfer robot is supplied to the processing device under the control of the robot control means. Carry the carrier.

If work guide means for displaying the recognition result by the carrier recognition means is provided, when the setting is switched from automatic transfer to manual transfer by the switching means while the carrier is being supplied to the processing apparatus, The operator refers to the display result by the work guiding means to manually convey the carrier supplied to the processing apparatus.

Further, if the carrier recognizing means comprises a bar code recognizing means and a judging means, the bar code recognizing means reads a bar code affixed in advance to the carrier supplied to the processing apparatus, The carrier is identified, and it is determined whether the carrier supplied to the processing device by the determination unit, that is, the workpiece stored in the carrier identified by the barcode recognition unit has been processed by the processing device. . Then, based on the recognition result by the barcode recognition means and the judgment result by the judgment means, it is possible to recognize what kind of processing situation the workpiece is stored in the carrier supplied to the processing apparatus.

[0012]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS A carrier transfer system according to the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. Note that, here, a case will be described in which the present invention is applied to a carrier transfer system that transfers a carrier containing a plurality of wafers in a semiconductor device manufacturing process. As shown in FIG. 1, the carrier transfer system of the present embodiment includes a station 11, a transfer robot 12, a robot controller 13, a plurality of processing devices 21a, 21b, 21c ..., And a processing device controller 22.
It is composed of a host computer 30.

The station 11 functions as a carrier storage for storing a carrier containing a plurality of wafers, and as will be described later, processing devices 21a, 21b, 2 are provided.
The carrier for storing wafers to be processed by 1c ... and the carrier for storing wafers processed by the processing devices 21a, 21b, 21c. It should be noted that individual barcodes are attached to these carriers in advance for each carrier. The transfer robot 12 transfers the carrier from the station 11 to process the processing devices 21 a, 21 a.
b, 21c ... and processing devices 21a, 21
The carrier is released from b, 21c, ... And conveyed to other processing devices 21a, 21b, 21c ,.

The robot control unit 13 is composed of, for example, a robot controller and functions as the robot control means of the present invention. Based on information from the processing device control unit 22, which will be described later, the robot control unit 13 carries the carrier to the carrier robot 12. It is intended to give an instruction of a transport operation. That is, the robot control unit 13 determines to the transfer robot 12 where the transfer robot 12 transfers a carrier from, for example, the station 11 to the processing device 21a, the processing device 21b to the processing device 21c, and the like. It gives an operation instruction.

The processing devices 21a, 21b, 21c, ... Take out the wafers one by one from the set carrier,
Semiconductor processes such as etching, CVD, and cleaning are performed, and the processed wafers are stored in a carrier again. Further, the processing devices 21a, 21b, 21c ...
Is equipped with bar code readers 23a, 23b, 23c, ... Reads the bar code attached to the set carrier, and when the semiconductor process processing on the wafer stored in the set carrier is completed,
It has a function of notifying the processing device control unit 22 to that effect.

However, these processing devices 21a, 21b,
21c ... indicates whether the carrier is set and the carrier containing the processed wafers is released according to a switching result by a switching unit 24 described later, that is, automatic transfer by the transfer robot 12 and manual transfer by an operator (operator). It is compatible with. Incidentally, each processing device 21a, 2
In the present embodiment, the semiconductor process processing by 1b, 21c ... Is performed in order from the processing device 21a to the processing device 21b, then the processing device 21c.
It is assumed that the semiconductor process processing in this carrier transfer system is set to be completed when the processing in 21c ...

The processing device control section 22 is composed of, for example, a personal computer equipped with a CPU, controls the processing devices 21a, 21b, 21c ... And also has a switching means 24, a carrier recognition means 25 and a work guiding means. And 26. Further, the processing device control unit 22 notifies the robot control unit 13 of the switching result by the switching unit 24 and the recognition result by the carrier recognizing unit 25, which will be described later. Switching means 24
Is a keyboard or the like (not shown) of the processing device controller 22, and is used to set and release the carrier with respect to the processing devices 21a, 21b, 21c ...
It is for switching the setting of whether the automatic transfer is performed or the manual transfer is performed by an operator.

The carrier recognizing means 25 is composed of a CPU and the like, and is composed of a bar code recognizing means 27, a judging means 28 and a holding means 29. The barcode recognition means 27 includes barcode readers 23a, 23b, 23c ... Corresponding to the respective processing devices 21a, 21b, 21c.
Based on the result read by each of the processing devices 21a,
The carrier set in 21b, 21c ... Is identified. The determination means 28 is configured to process each processing device 21a, 2
Based on the notification that the semiconductor process processing has been completed from 1b, 21c, ..., Each processing device 21a, 21b, 21c ,.
It is determined whether or not the semiconductor process processing on the wafers housed in the carrier set in step 1 has been completed.

The holding means 29 stores the identification result of the barcode recognition means 27 and the judgment means 2 in a register or the like in the CPU.
And the processing results 21a, 21b, 21c for the wafers stored in the identified carriers.
It is held until all the semiconductor process processes in. That is, the carrier recognizing means 25 including the bar code recognizing means 27, the judging means 28, and the holding means 29 identifies the carrier by the bar code recognizing means 27, and the judging means 28 stores the wafers accommodated in the carrier. It is determined whether or not the semiconductor process processing has been completed, and the holding means 29 holds these results until all semiconductor process processing is completed. That is, the carrier recognizing means 25 is arranged so that each processing device 21
Wafers stored in the carriers set in a, 21b, 21c ...
When the processing by c ... is completed, which processing device 21a, 21
It is to recognize whether or not the processing by b, 21c ... Is completed.

The work guiding means 26 is a processing device control section 22.
The CRT device (not shown) is used to display the recognition result by the carrier recognition means 25 and to guide the operator when the carrier manually conveys the carrier to the processing devices 21a, 21b, 21c. The host computer 30 controls the entire carrier transport system, and is connected to the processing device controller 22 of another carrier transport system so as to manage the entire manufacturing process of the semiconductor device. It is a thing.

Next, FIG. 2 shows a basic operation example in the carrier transport system configured as described above.
This will be described with reference to the flowchart of (a). In this carrier transfer system, in order to perform semiconductor process processing on a wafer, first, a carrier containing a wafer to be processed is transferred from the station 11 to the processing apparatus 21a (step 101, hereinafter the step is abbreviated as S). However,
This transfer may be automatic transfer by the transfer robot 12 or manual transfer by manpower, depending on the setting of the switching unit 24. When the carrier containing the wafer to be processed is conveyed and set in the processing device 21a (S
102), the barcode reader 23a reads the barcode attached to the set carrier, and the result is identified by the barcode recognition means 27 (S10).
3) The holding result is held in the holding means 29.

Subsequently, in the processing apparatus 21a, the wafer is taken out from the set carrier and subjected to semiconductor process processing (S104), and the processed wafer is stored in the set carrier again. When the semiconductor process processing in the processing device 21a is completed for all the wafers accommodated in the carrier, the judgment means 28 judges that the processing is completed (S105), and the judgment result is held in the holding means 29. To be done. Then, the carrier accommodating the processed wafer is released from the processing device 21a (S10).
6). This release may be performed by the transfer robot 12 or manually by an operator according to the setting made by the switching unit 24.

At this time, in the carrier recognition means 25, the carrier set in the processing device 21a is determined by the identification result in the bar code recognition means 27 held in the holding means 29 and the judgment result in the judgment means 28. It is recognized that the wafer for which the semiconductor process has been completed in the processing apparatus 21a is stored. The recognition result by the carrier recognizing means 25 is notified to the robot controller 13 when the carrier is released automatically by the transfer robot 12. Then, in the robot controller 13, it is determined whether or not the released carrier contains a wafer that needs to be subjected to another semiconductor process, that is, whether or not the released carrier is transferred to the other processing devices 21b, 21c, .... Is determined (S107).

If it is judged that another semiconductor process is required, that is, if all the semiconductor process are not completed,
The robot controller 13 gives an instruction to transfer the carrier released by the transfer robot 12 to the other processing devices 21b, 21c, ...
~ S107) is repeated. When it is determined that the required semiconductor process processing, that is, the semiconductor process processing in each of the processing devices 21a, 21b, 21c ... Is completed, the robot controller 13 transfers the carrier released by the transfer robot 12 to the station 11. To give instructions. Then, the transfer robot 12 transfers the carrier to the station 11 (S108).

On the other hand, when the carrier is manually released by hand, the result of recognition by the carrier recognizing means 25 is displayed on the work guiding means 26 as work guidance for the operator, and the operator refers to the work guidance. Then, it is determined whether or not the released carrier accommodates a wafer that needs to be processed by another semiconductor process (S107). When the operator determines that another semiconductor process treatment is necessary, the released carrier is manually conveyed to the other processing devices 21b, 21c ...
Hereinafter, the above steps (S101 to S107) are repeated. When the operator determines that the required semiconductor process processing is completed, the released carrier is manually transferred to the station 11 (S108).

In this way, in the carrier transfer system of this embodiment, the semiconductor process process for the wafer and the accompanying transfer of the carrier containing the wafer are performed. Note that, here, for simplification of description, the case where the semiconductor process processing is performed on one carrier is shown as an operation example, but each processing device 21a, 2
1b, 21c, ... Perform semiconductor process processing in parallel, so that a plurality of carriers are actually transported in parallel.

Next, an operation example of switching between automatic transfer and manual transfer in the carrier transfer system of this embodiment will be described with reference to the flow chart of FIG. 2 (b).
When the operator switches between automatic transfer and manual transfer by the switching means 24 (S201), the barcode recognition means 27 causes the barcode readers 23a, 23b, 2
3c ... Based on the reading result, processing devices 21a, 21
It is determined whether the carrier is set in b, 21c ... (S202). When the barcode recognition means 27 determines that the carrier is not set in the processing devices 21a, 21b, 21c ..., The respective processing devices 21a, 21b, 21.
Since c ... Is in the initial state, the processing device control unit 22
As described above, the notification to the robot controller 13 or the work guidance means 26 provides work guidance to the operator and instructs the processing devices 21a, 21b, 21c ... S101).

Further, the processing devices 21a, 21b, 21c ...
If it is determined that the carrier has been set in the wafer, the determination means 28 determines whether or not the semiconductor process processing in the processing devices 21a, 21b, 21c ... Has been completed for the wafer stored in the carrier (S203). ). When it is determined that the processing in the processing devices 21a, 21b, 21c ... Is not completed, the processing device control unit 22 processes the wafers stored in the carrier set as described above to the processing devices 21a. , 21b, 21c ... Give an instruction to perform semiconductor process processing (S104 in FIG. 2A).

When it is determined that the set carrier accommodates the wafers that have been processed by the processing devices 21a, 21b, 21c ..., The processing device control unit 22 causes the robot to operate as described above. Notification to the control unit 13 or work guidance to the operator is given by the work guidance means 26, and an instruction is given to release the set carrier from the processing devices 21a, 21b, 21c ... (S106 in FIG. 2A). . In this way, in the carrier transport system of this embodiment, switching between automatic transport and manual transport is performed.

As described above, in the carrier transport system of this embodiment, the robot controller 13 controls the transport robot 12 based on the recognition result of the carrier recognition means 25 and the switching result of the switching means 24. It is like this. Therefore, for example, the processing devices 21a, 21
Even when the setting is switched from the manual transfer to the automatic transfer by the switching means 24 when the carriers are set in b, 21c ..., the transfer robot 12 transfers the carrier according to the robot control unit 13, so that the manual transfer is always performed. It is possible to switch to automatic transport, and there is no need to wait for the system to reach its initial state.

Further, since the setting of the manual transfer and the automatic transfer is switched by the switching means 24, it is not necessary to switch the settings of the processing devices 21a, 21b, 21c ... And the transfer robot 12, respectively. As a result, the labor of switching work is reduced, and the operator can switch easily and conveniently. In other words, the carrier transfer system of the present embodiment can switch between manual transfer and automatic transfer at any time, and since it can be done with a small amount of switching work, production can be performed without requiring time for the system function to stop. It is possible to prevent deterioration of sex. Therefore, for example, the processing devices 21a, 2
The carrier can be set to 1b, 21c, ... By manual transfer, and the set carrier can be released by automatic transfer.

Further, in the carrier transport system of the present embodiment, the work guide means 26 displays the recognition result of the carrier recognition means 25. Therefore, for example, when the carrier is set in the processing devices 21a, 21b, 21c ... Even if the setting is switched from the automatic transfer to the manual transfer by the switching unit 24, the operator refers to the display result by the work guiding unit 24. Thus, the carriers set in the processing devices 21a, 21b, 21c ... Can be carried. Therefore, as in the case described above, it is possible to prevent a decrease in productivity, prevent a manual transfer error during manual transfer, and improve the reliability of the system.

Further, in the carrier transport system of this embodiment, the bar code recognition means 2 and the judgment means 28 enable
It is possible to recognize what kind of processing condition the wafers are stored in the carriers set in the processing devices 21a, 21b, 21c ... Therefore, even when a plurality of processing devices 21a, 21b, 21c ... Are supported, the carrier recognition means 25 terminates the processing by which processing device 21a, 21b, 21c. Then, which processing device 21a, 21b, 2
It is possible to reliably recognize whether or not the processing by 1c ... Is completed.

In this embodiment, the case where the semiconductor process processing on the wafer is set to be performed from the processing device 21a to the processing device 21b, then to the processing device 21c ... Even if the processing is performed in order, each processing device 2 may be processed depending on the wafer to be processed.
It is applicable even when the order of carrying to 1a, 21b, 21c ... Is different. Further, in this embodiment, the carrier recognizing means 25 and the barcode recognizing means 27 and the judging means 2 are used.
Although the case where the wafer is stored in the carriers set in the processing devices 21a, 21b, 21c, ... It may be.

Further, in the present embodiment, the processing device controller 22
Although the above description is made of a personal computer or the like, any other device may be used as long as it has a function of a CPU and the like and a function of connecting a terminal device that can be operated by an operator. Further, in the present embodiment, the case of carrying a carrier containing a plurality of wafers applied to the manufacturing process of a semiconductor device has been described, but a carrier carrying carrier carrying a workpiece to be processed by a processing device is carried. Any other system can be applied as long as it is a system.

[0036]

As described above, in the carrier transport system of the present invention, the transport robot is controlled by the robot control means based on the switching result by the switching means and the recognition result by the carrier recognizing means. For example, even if the setting is switched from the manual transfer to the automatic transfer when the carrier is supplied to the processing apparatus, the transfer robot transfers the carrier supplied to the processing apparatus according to the robot control means. Therefore, the manual transfer and the automatic transfer can be switched at any time, and the waiting time or the like until the system becomes the initial state is unnecessary. Further, since the manual transfer and the automatic transfer are switched by the switching means, it is not necessary to switch the settings of the processing device and the transfer robot, respectively, and the process can be performed easily and conveniently as compared with the conventional one. That is, in the carrier transport system of the present invention, switching between manual transport and automatic transport can be performed at any time and easily, so that it is possible to prevent a decrease in productivity without requiring time for the function of the system to stop. Has the effect.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a schematic configuration of an embodiment of a carrier transportation system according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a flowchart showing an operation example in the carrier transport system of FIG.

[Explanation of symbols]

 12 Transport Robot 13 Robot Control Section (Robot Control Means) 21a, 21b, 21c Processing Equipment 24 Switching Means 25 Carrier Recognition Means 26 Work Guidance Means 27 Bar Code Recognition Means 28 Judgment Means

Claims (3)

[Claims] 1. A processing apparatus that takes out the workpiece from a carrier that stores the workpiece, performs processing, and stores the processed workpiece in the carrier, and a workpiece that is processed by the processing apparatus. A carrier robot that supplies the stored carrier to the processing apparatus, and carries out the carrier that stores the workpiece after being processed by the processing apparatus from the processing apparatus, or supplies the carrier to the processing apparatus or In a carrier transfer system in which unloading is set to be performed by one of automatic transfer by the transfer robot and manual transfer by hand, setting of supply or unloading of the carrier between the automatic transfer and the manual transfer is performed. The switching means for switching from one to the other, and the carrier supplied to the processing device, the processing object in what processing situation A carrier recognizing means for recognizing whether the object is stored, and a robot control means for controlling the operation of the transfer robot based on a switching result by the switching means and a recognition result by the carrier recognizing means are provided. Carrier carrier system. 2. The carrier transfer system according to claim 1, further comprising work guide means for displaying a recognition result by the carrier recognition means. 3. The carrier recognition means is a barcode recognition means for identifying the carrier by reading a barcode previously attached to the carrier supplied to the processing apparatus, and the barcode recognition means identifies the carrier. 3. The carrier transfer system according to claim 1 or 2, further comprising: a determination unit that determines whether or not the workpiece stored in the carrier has been processed by the processing device.